My 5 favourite books from my childhood

Happy Children’s Book Weeks everyone! I was a MASSIVE book geek as a kid, so to celebrate, here are my top five favourite childhood books.

1) The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S Lewis

First up, Narnia. I was completely obsessed with this book as a child. It had talking animals, an evil witch, Christmas and turkish delight in it – practically everything you could want or hope for in a children’s book! This book series is a classic, and induced me to open every single cupboard in Ikea, hoping to find Narnia (unfortunately I failed!) I was completely swept up in the magic of The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, and to this day it’s one of my favourite books!

2) Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone by J. K Rowling

Of course Harry Potter is going to be on this list. It’s probably THE most well known children’s book series ever, and has spawned not only millions of devoted fans worldwide, but also theme parks and a very successful movie series. Harry Potter was my thing. I dressed up as Hermione every Halloween, had Harry Potter themed birthday parties and got VERY upset the summer after I turned eleven when my Hogwarts letter didn’t arrive in the post (I’m still bitter about that to be honest). The Philosophers Stone is where the magic of Hogwarts started, and every time I re-read it I’m taken back to my childhood.

3) The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien

My poor, poor Dad was forced to read and re-read The Hobbit to me from the time I was three until I was about seven. I completely and utterly LOVED it and every stuffed toy I owned was named Bilbo Baggins in honour of my all time favourite hobbit. This book is perfect – it’s light and funnier than the Lord of the Rings, but you are still completely immersed in Middle Earth.

4) Matilda by Roald Dahl

To be honest, I could put every single one of Roald Dahl’s books on this list – they are all so imaginative and funny! However, I chose Matilda because as a kid, she was my hero. She loved reading, just like me, and I WISHED I had telekinetic powers! Matilda is hilarious and heartwarming, and has not only spawned a film, but also a musical (seriously check it out – it is so good and remains true to Dahl’ storytelling genius).

5) Coraline by Neil Gaiman

Neil Gaiman is one of my all time favourite authors, and his children’s books are mind-blowing. Coraline is a creepy as they come – the story of a girl and her other mother. Neil writes with such beauty, and the story is pitched expertly – it’s scary but not TOO scary. I spent a whole summer reading and re-reading this as a kid – it’s that good!

I hope you’ve enjoyed my top five books I read as a kid – do you recognise any of your favourites? Have a LOVELY Children’s Book Week – I’m off to celebrate in the only way I know how; by reading my favourites all over again!